Sunday, January 7, 2007

How Do They Know?

As if I don't have enough concerns, I now need to worry about my ear lobes sagging.  I've been worried about other parts of my anatomy giving in to gravity since I turned 40 but I had never given my ear lobes a second thought until I read my e-mail last night.

"Ear lobes saggy, no problem try ear lifts."

I called my sister.  "Are my ear lobes saggy?"

"Why do you ask?"

Actually she said, "Why in the hell are you calling me to ask about your ear lobes?"

Clearly, she had not heard of this phenomenon, so I read the ad to her or at least tried to do so but, she was busy.  "I need to clean something.  Got to go."

I decided to save enlightening her about the saggy ear lobe matter for when she had more time and wasn't busy cleaning something. 

I went back to reading my email.  Hmmm, Have a Healthy Baby.  I decided to delete the item without reading it.  I'm pretty certain that I'm not pregnant.  I have a vague memory of the activities that one engages in that result in pregnancy and let's just say that I haven't been active in a long time.  My memory is sometimes faulty but I think I would remember.

I read on and was touched by the number of people that want to help me with my love life.  I had three emails from Mate1, addressing me by name.  "Sheria, tired of being single?"  I felt so special. 

Real Mature Single got right to the point, "Are you single and over 50?"  I was a bit put off by the over 50 part as my mother taught me that it's never polite to discuss a woman's age, however the lovely photo in the ad made it clear that RMS considered the over 50 set to still be a lot of fun.  Of course, I've never really wanted to ride in a wheelbarrow.

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

As I continued to read my email, I was overcome with all the readily available assistance in my mailbox.  Mature Singles Only clearly was to be taken seriously.  It connects you with real people ( as opposed to non-real people).  When I visited the website, a young woman in a stylish black pant suit spoke of the many benefits of joining MSO.  She sounded vaguely British, sort of like Madonna's adopted accent.  I think it was meant to convey her sincerity.

I was a bit depressed at the number of people concerned about my weight but I decided that they were only reminding me that I'm fat for my own good.  Of course, I already have my mother to remind me of many things for my own good, but I suppose one can never have too much reminding. 

I barely made the cut for Hoodia.  The ad invites women between 23-51 only to sign up to receive Hoodia, the new weight loss pill that works by making you not feel hunger.  On the website, another earnest young woman dressed in black warns that the supply of Hoodia is rapidly dwindling and that only people with more than 15 pounds to lose may receive an order.  It's free except for the $6.95 shipping charge.  I think that wearing black makes one appear to be truthful.

I was excited to see the offer for a free membership at Curves.  I've decided that this is the year that I get serious about exercise, and I followed the link!  Alas, I get a free membership only if I fill out 123 offers and if my name is drawn.  Maybe Denzel Washington will ask me out if I wait long enough or maybe I'll win a free membership to Curves first.

I almost didn't open the Detox Footpatch email but curiosity got the best of me.  According to the ad, Verseo Detox Footpatch is an all natural patch that removes heavy metals and other toxins from your system while you sleep.  As if saggy ear lobes aren't a big enough worry, now I've got a body riddled with toxins and heavy metals.  How am I supposed to sleep?

I called my sister back to share all that I had learned from my emails. 

"Are you done with your cleaning, because I've got to tell you about this foot patch thing!"

"Yeah, I'm done cleaning but I need to go floss.  Call you later."

Maybe she'll call today.

A little music from Corinne Bailey Rae, Put Your Records On

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yep, sorry to say if you have pierced ears and wear really heavy dangly earrings for most of your life, it not only stretches the hole but also the ear lobes.  Hence the song.  'Do your ears hang low can you toss them to and fro.  Can you tie them in a knot can you tie them in a bow', etc.  Next time you are out have a sneaky look at elderly womens ears with dangly earrings.
Jenny <><
http://journals.aol.co.uk/jennyp51/stop-the-clock-times-moving-too-/

Anonymous said...

Firstly thanks for the advice re tags and links.
Why is it that before i turned 40 these e-mails did not exsist or maybe I just did'nt notice there is so much advice out there for the over 40 50 60's it makes you wonder how we lived our lives before growing old lol
take care

yasmin (cayasm)

Anonymous said...

I love the style of this entry... humor ala Andy Rooney.... very cute. I probably won't ever have sagging ear lobes, then, because I don't wear heavy ear rings. I've tried the heavier dangles because I love dangley (sic) earrings... but by the end of the day, the holes are often inflamed and irritated, so I don't wear them. You must be well loved... I don't get any of that kind of mail for the over 50 crowd, and I've been here for three years now! Oh well, I think I'll pass on the extra attention. Ridding the body of toxins... I've heard about holistic approaches, but not the foot patch. Hmmmm, I take metamucil capsules each night as a way to rid myself of cholesterol, and it must be working for my cholesterol has dropped. And my doctor recommended fish oil twice a day for the same purpose. It must be helping. But other toxins... don't know. I'm probably wracked with hideous amounts of chemicals I've breathed in after working in a darkroom for nine years, and using rubber cement for all my art ventures during the past thirty years, and all those smoke-filled dance lounges we attended during our first four years (late seventies/early eighties) together when we went out dancing every weekend before our first child was born. Or the pollutants from cleaning the mold from our bathrooms, or even all that nasty stuff that comes out of the vaccuum cleaner bag. Oh, and in 1981, when we built our home, the plaster dust was so bad from the plaster board walls that we had to wear face masks while we swept it up. I'm sure I've breathed or consumed other toxic materials unwittingly. I would probably benefit from being detoxified... but what I really need is something to make that nail fungus go away on my big toe! I have no idea when or where I picked it up, but there it is. I'm calling my doctor on that one... have a good week, Sheria. Bea

Anonymous said...

A curious thing happened when I turned 51.....every day I now receive junk smail mail EVERY day offering me cheap discounts on car and house insurance.....as if, before the age of 51, I was not a good risk....somehow on the eve of my 51st birthday the birthday fairies changed all that apparently!  Sagging earlobes...hmm...I'm going to have to go check mine out in the mirror now....
Marie
http://journals.aol.co.uk/mariealicejoan/MariesMuses/

Anonymous said...

Omg you are too funny!  I have never heard of sagging earlobes.  But hey, everything starts to sag why not an ear lobe.  lol  Just kidding!  (as I sit here feeling my earlobes.)  If I called my sister to talk about earlobes I think she would have hung up on me.  hehe  Hope your having a great day.
Dina

Anonymous said...

I'm so excited to have you reading my journal! Thanks for stopping by! I look forward to getting to know you thru your journal... *hugs*
heather

Anonymous said...

Hi Sheria,
Do not know why I was not getting your alerts. Thought you were taking a break until I saw you over at Gerry's. Loved thgis entry. Ran right in to check my earlobes. Lol. Bam
http://journals.aol.com/reconcilinglife/reconciling-life/

Anonymous said...

Thanks for stopping by OPL....I have  your journal on alerts now. I am hooked. :) I swear you had me ROLLING. OMG too funny. Thanks for the MUCH NEEDED laugh this morning!!
THANKS!
Jen

Anonymous said...

dear Sheria, hilarious!
lol!
hey you are seriously entertaining!
natalie

Anonymous said...

LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh, how hard I laughed reading this...you have no idea...lol...I loved this....well, at 43 the only thing I wonder is if its kosher to tell my future guy(if hes out there) that I am prone to gray pubes to the point that plucking now seems pointless...lol...sagging ear lobes?.....never thought of that....but cool links...I still love eharmony..think its the best...but open to a mature audience if such a thing exists,lol..~Raven

Anonymous said...

Sheria I got that dam Curves offer too and because of my back and ankle being what they are, I got excited for a minute because I thought maybe since it is free, I could just try it out on good days and see what I can do.  I said "No thanks to the offers" but it wouldn't let me go any further - so I thought what the heck, a bargain coupon email couldn't be so bad, ok I pick that one - now on to the membership - NOPE, some online university wants to know what courses I would like info on - none please .......... yea that ain't gonna cut it, they REALLY wanted me to pick one.  Ok I'll pick law, sounds good - now the memebership?  NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!  I gave up, hell I'll pay the $20 for the membership instead of going through all this .......... but ya know, to tell the truth I'm now so tired from all that BS that I don't really feel like working out after all. <G>
I feel your pain, I got them all too!
Stacy

Anonymous said...

This lousy comment box claimed I had written more than 2000 characters! I kept cutting it down, but it was still saying the same thing.  It has to be busted so I'll have to do this in a series.  Yes, it's me.  I've taken to visiting other people's journals especially when I want to talk, but find I have nothing to say.  As for your earlobes sagging, maybe you've been wearing heavy earrings? That would cause it, so you need to stop or it will only progress.
As for your love life, I wouldn't put too much stock in these various companies that are going around.  You can have everything in the world in common; JB and I did, and you know how that turned out.  People used to give me advice, which I ignored, but I'll pass it on to you.  You have lots of interests.  Go to where people with the same interests hang out
I don't trust this thing so here comes part two . . .

Anonymous said...

Part Two:
Don't do bars, because usually women like us (BBB's) usually get hit on by guys who are interested in only one thing.
As for Hoodia, I've seen it advertised along with all the other weight-loss drugs on the market(OTC).  If you use them, you will lose weight!.  Of course you have to go on a calorie and fat restrictive diet and exercise 3-5 times weekly.  That's their disclaimer; they're smart, so don't you be a dummy.  I'm one of those who has lost and gained it back over and over.  A few years ago, God got sick of me and decided He was going to take it off me Himself.  I had just come out of the hospital having had pneumonia.  I was seeing my doctor once a month and every
time I went it, I was smaller than the time before.  He said, "you're melting away right before my eyes!"  I should have told him to take me to a lab, have them take
me apart and find out why so they could bottle it.  But I forgot. Eventually I lost 120 lbs. and went down 6 dress sizes.  On to part three.

Anonymous said...

Part Three:
Being on a diet won't keep you thinner. You have to change your lifestyle. I have
not had any bacon for over 20 years.  I love fried chicken, but I can't remember the last time I had any.  I can only drink diet sodas because regular ones are too sweet now.  I don't use sugar anymore, only Splenda.  I never use a salt shaker or butter. There are substitutes for those too.  You can get used to all that, but what I find hard is the final solution; portion size.  What's easiest for me is to just buy a bunch of Healthy Choice dinners and soups.  Lean Cuisine is good, but their sodium level is higher.  You were talking about "Curves." If that appeals to you, then do it.  For me, what works best are exercise tapes that I use at home.  It's always about what works best for you.  When people would ask me how I did it, I tell them it just fell off, which was mostly true.  The lifestyle change is the only way to keep it off.  I hope this has been informative. (lol)

Hugs & Kisses and I beat these old journal limits.
Deb

Anonymous said...

This really made me laugh Sheria - so well told. These ads are designed to drive us nuts!!! (LOL!)
Kate.
http://journals.aol.co.uk/bobandkate/AnAnalysisofLife/

Anonymous said...

lol  you are very funny.
gina